Wrench joint



Oct. 30, 1934. N. F. MCNAUGHT ET AL 1,978,590

WRENCH JOINT Filed Jan. 12, 1934 Patented Get. 30, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE WRENCH JOINT Application January 12, 1934, Serial No. 706,346

Claims.

Our invention relates to wrench joints, includ-- ing particularly universal joints of the kind which quite commonly are incorporated in wrenches and/ or wrench attachments.

I The salient object of the present invention is to provide a wrench joint having a construction such that relative pivotal movements between some or all of its'articulated elements are braked so that when such elements have been given any desired locational relationship, within their adjustment range, they will retain that relationship against the force of gravity and despite all moderate jolts and jars incidental to the manipulation of a wrench into engagement with a nut or other object to be turned by and with the wrench.

A salient feature of the present invention is that the braking of the elements of the joint is accomplished by spring pressed axially movable bearings for the pins by which said elements are articulated.

In the accompanying drawing illustrating practical embodiments of our invention,

Fig. l is an elevational view of a universal joint especially adapted for inclusion in a socket wrench 25 set,--the dotted lines indicating the changed positions of the articulated elements of the joint;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view which may be regarded as taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1 and looking in the direction indicated by the arrows;

Fig. 3 is a view partly in section and partly in elevation which may be regarded as taken on the line 33 of Fig. 2, and looking in the direction indicated by the arrows;

Fig. 4 illustrates an embodiment of our invention wherein the universal joint has one of its forks formed as an integral extension of a wrench handle,-this universal joint being provided with a modified form of braking device; and r Fig. 5 is a sectional view which may be regarded as taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 4.

Similar characters of reference refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

Referring first to Figs. 1 to 3 inclusive, reference numerals 6 and 7 indicate the forked elements of a wrench universal, and 8 indicates a block which is embraced by said forked elements. The forked elements and the block are articulated for pivotal movements on spaced axes which are at right angles to each other, and are defined by pins 9 and 10. Each of the said pins is as usual securely riveted against displacement from its associated fork member.

Fork member 6 is illustrated as being provided with a squared integral head 11, provided with a convenient spring pressed ball 12, to facilitate retention of the head by any suitable wrench socket. Fork member 7 is conformed to provide a conventional wrench socket 13.

Referring now particularly to Fig. 2, it will be noted that the pin 10 extends freely through a transverse bore in block 8, the block 8 being counterbored to provide an internal annular shoulder 14 and to snugly accommodate movablebearings 15-15 for the pin. Each of the said bearings 15 is in the form of a metal annulus having snug sliding and rotating fits with the pins 10 and the block counter bores by which said bearings are received. Acting between the internal shoulder 14 and the inner surface of each bearing 15 is a split spring washer 16 which encircles the pin 10 and acts at all times to press its associated bearing 15 against the opposed finger of the fork 7.

Pin 9 is provided with spring-washer-pressed bearings corresponding precisely with those illustrated in connection with the pin 10.

From the foregoing description it will be understood that the bearings for the articulating pins of the universal perform dual functions, i. e., they effectively journal pins 9 and 10 in the block 8 and also effectively brake relative movements between the articulated elements of the joint. Thus the members of the joint are capable of retaining any desired positional relationship to which they may be adjusted, to facilitate the manipulation of the socket 13 into engagement with a hard-to-get-at nut, or other object to be engaged by such socket,-the braking effect of the bearings being sufficient to maintain a desired adjusted relationship of the joint elements against the force of gravity and all normal shocks and jolts incidental to the manipulation of the socket into engagement with a nut or the like.

In that embodiment of our invention which is shown in Figs. 4 and 5, the forked element 6 of the universal joint constitutes an integral extension of a wrench handle 17. Otherwise, ex-- cept for the details of the bearing-brakes, the universal joint shown in Figs. 4 and 5 corresponds with the ones shown in the preceding figures.

In the arrangement of Figs. 4 and 5, the bores of the block 8 through which the pins 9 and 10 extend are bores of uniform diameter, as is most clearly illustrated in Fig. 5. In this instance the pin bearings 15-45 are urged outwardly and against the fingers of the forked elements of the universal by coiled compression springs 18,'each' of which encircles its associated pin and presses against the inner surfaces of both of its associated bearings 15.

While we have illustrated our invention as applied to universal joints, i. e., joints comprising a pair of forked elements both articulated with respect to an intervening block which they both embrace, it will and should be understood that our invention may be applied to those types of wrench joints which'are not of the universal type.

Having thus illustrated and described our invention, what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is:

1. A wrench joint comprising a forked element, and a mated element embraced by said forked element, a bore in the mated element, a pin extending through said bore and engaging in the fingers of the forked element, bearing collars encircling said pin, and movable in said bore, and spring means confined within said bore and arranged to urge said bearing collars outwardly into frictional engagement with their opposed fork fingers.

2. A wrench joint comprising a forked element and a mated element embraced by said forked element, a bore in the mated element, a pin extending through said bore and engaging in the fingers of the forked element, bearing collars encircling said pin, and movable in said bore, an internal shoulder in said bore, and spring washers encircling said pin and each acting between the shoulder and one of the bearing collars to urge the latter outwardly into frictional engagement with its opposed fork finger.

3. In combination with the forked elements, block and articulating pins of a universal joint, axially movable bearing collars for said articulating pins, said bearing collars being. carried by and movable in the block, and spring means also located within the block arranged to urge the bearing collars into frictional engagement with opposed fingers of the forked elements, substantially as and for the purpose described.

- 4. A wrench joint comprising a forked element and a mated element embraced by said forked element, a bore in the mated element, a pin extending through said bore and engaging in the fingers of the forked element, a bearing collar for said pin located in said bore, and spring means also located in said bore serving to move said bearing collar on and axially of the pin into frictional engagement with an opposed fork finger.

5. A wrench joint comprising a forked element and a mated element embraced by said forked element, a bore in the mated element, a pin extending through said bore and engaging in the fingers of the forked element, and spring means located in said bore and encircling said pin, said spring means serving to exert yielding pressure upon a finger of the forked element to brake relative pivotal movement between the forked element and the mated element of the joint.

NORRIS F. MCNAUGHT. EDWARD H. PETERSON. 

